1976: Chimaltenango was the epicenter of a devastating earthquake which destroyed half of the Clinic infrastructure while the quake-proof "hospitalito" served as a center of emergency care for hundreds of people.

1976:  Behrhorst's Chimaltenango program cited by the World Health Organization as one of ten models, worldwide, for effective work among the rural poor.

1980:  Open war between the army and various leftist guerrilla factions fighting for power. Behrhorst maintains neutrality to be allowed to continue to provide basic health care, but at least a dozen Behrhorst-trained health promoters are killed in indiscriminate army counterinsurgency actions. The violence disrupts health care work and health conditions worsen because of social dislocation and economic damage. Guatemala suffers as a country of "widows and orphans."

1980:  Guatemalan leadership and ownership of the Chimaltenango program assured through the incorporation of the "Carroll Behrhorst" Guatemalan Development Foundation.

1983, 84, 85:  Gunmen kill a Guatemalan doctor working at Behrhorst's clinic; the director of the loan program "is disappeared." Health workers are singled out for repression and about one-third of the staff of the clinic are killed. Dr. Carroll Behrhorst is the recipient of death threats and removes his family from the country briefly after a brutal episode affecting relatives of his wife, Alicia. Behrhorst soon returns to continue his work.

1986:  First Behrhorst Study Tour travels to Guatemala to visit rural villages, meet Behrhorst leaders, and enjoy Mayan culture.

1990:  Dr. Behrhorst dies of natural causes in May while working at the clinic.

1992:   A NEW DAWN IN GUATEMALA: TOWARD A WORLDWIDE HEALTH VISION, edited by Richard Luecke, is published, documenting the Behrhorst story and its impact around the world.

1995:  As the "Carroll Behrhorst" Guatemalan Development Foundation approaches its goal of becoming a self-sustaining program, the U.S.-based Behrhorst Clinic Foundation, Inc. becomes Behrhorst Partners for Development, expanding its mission to support many important Guatemalan programs.

2001 - Behrhorst Partners for Development launches a rural health program to decrease child and maternal mortality in villages in the municipalities of San Martin Jilotepeque and Patzun. Working with communities, local government and other non-profit organizations, BPD addresses the root causes of infant and maternal mortality, gastro-intestinal and respiratory illnesses, by launching water and sanitation projects and installing safe, vented cooking stoves. 

NOW AND IN THE FUTURE:  Behrhorst Partners for Development will provide financial and moral support for Guatemala's Mayan people and others who struggle to meet their basic needs.

Board of Directors: